Reading 65/341, Joshua 16-19

[A] More mapping today, with a few lines of interest mixed in. The most important part of today's reading is the settlement of the tent of meeting in Shiloh. This would be the center of worship for Israel until King David moved it to the city that he finally conquered from the Jebusites (Jerusalem), about 350 years from now.
[B] A little Hebrew lesson for understanding city names: Beth=House of. So Bethlehem is House of Lehem (bread). Bethany is House of Any (poor). Beth-shemesh is House of Shemesh (Sun god). Jer=City. So Jerusalem=City of Salem (peace). Jericho, however, just means "Moon", since they worshiped the moon. El=God. So Israel is God fights. Jezreel is God sows. Baal=god in the Cannanite language. It could be used to refer to any of the various gods generically. Hazar=village. So Hazar-shual is Village of Shual(fox). Hazar-susah is the Village of Susah (horse). Beer=well. So Beersheba is the Well of Sheba(oath or seven). Baalath-beer is the god of the well.

...Joshua...

The lot came out for the children of Joseph from the Jordan at Jericho, east of the waters of Jericho in the desert, going up from Jericho through the hill country to Bethel, and it went out from Bethel to Luz, and passed along to the border of Ataroth of the Archites, and it went down westward to the border of the Japhletites, to the border of lower Beth-horon, to Gezer, and it ended at the sea. The children of Joseph, Manasseh and Ephraim, took their inheritance. The border of the children of Ephraim according to their families was: the border of their inheritance on the east was Ataroth-addar, to upper Beth-horon, and the border goes from there to the sea, and the border on the north was at Michmethath, and the border turned about eastward to Taanath-shiloh, and passed along it on the east of Janoah, and it went down from Janoah to Ataroth, and to Naarah, and reached Jericho, and ended at the Jordan. From Tappuah the border went west to the brook of Kanah, and ended at the sea. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Ephraim according to their families, together with the cities which were set apart for the children of Ephraim in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Manasseh, all the cities with their villages. However, they did not drive out the Canaanites who lived in Gezer, but the Canaanites dwell in the midst of Ephraim to this day, and have become servants to do forced labor.

This was the lot for the tribe of Manasseh, for he was the firstborn of Joseph. Machir the firstborn of Manasseh, the father of Gilead, because he was a man of war, had Gilead and Bashan. So the lot was cast for the rest of the children of Manasseh according to their families, for the children of Abiezer, and for the children of Helek, and for the children of Asriel, and for the children of Shechem, and for the children of Hepher, and for the children of Shemida; these were the male children of Manasseh the son of Joseph according to their families. But Zelophehad, the son of Hepher, the son of Gilead, the son of Machir, the son of Manasseh, had no sons, but daughters, and these are the names of his daughters: Mahlah, and Noah, Hoglah, Milcah, and Tirzah. They came near before Eleazar the priest and Joshua the son of Nun, and before the princes, saying, “The Lord commanded Moses to give us an inheritance among our brothers.” Therefore according to the commandment of the Lord he gave them an inheritance among the brothers of their father. Thus there fell ten parts to Manasseh, besides the land of Gilead and Bashan, which is beyond the Jordan, because the daughters of Manasseh had an inheritance among his sons. The land of Gilead belonged to the rest of the sons of Manasseh. The border of Manasseh was from Asher to Michmethath, which is east of Shechem, and the border went south to the inhabitants of En-tappuah. The land of Tappuah belonged to Manasseh, but the town of Tappuah on the border of Manasseh belonged to the children of Ephraim. The border went down to the brook of Kanah. South of the brook, these cities belonged to Ephraim among the cities of Manasseh, and the border of Manasseh was on the north side of the brook, and ended at the sea. South of it was Ephraim's land, and north of it was Manasseh's, and the sea was its border, and they reached to Asher on the north, and to Issachar on the east. Manasseh had in Issachar and in Asher, Beth-shean and its towns, and Ibleam and its towns, and the inhabitants of Dor and its towns, and the inhabitants of Endor and its towns, and the inhabitants of Taanach and its towns, and the inhabitants of Megiddo and its towns, the third is Naphath. Yet the children of Manasseh could not drive out the inhabitants of those cities, but the Canaanites continued to dwell in that land. It happened, when the children of Israel had grown strong, that they put the Canaanites to forced labor, and did not utterly drive them out.

The children of Joseph spoke to Joshua, saying, “Why have you given me but one lot and one part for an inheritance, seeing I am a great people, because up to now the Lord has blessed me?” Joshua said to them, “If you are a great people, go up to the forest, and cut down for yourself there in the land of the Perizzites and of the Rephaim, since the hill country of Ephraim is too narrow for you.” The children of Joseph said, “The hill country is not enough for us, and all the Canaanites who dwell in the land of the valley have chariots of iron, both they who are in Beth-shean and its towns, and they who are in the valley of Jezreel.” Joshua spoke to the house of Joseph, to Ephraim and to Manasseh, saying, “You are a great people, and have great power; you shall not have one lot only, but the hill country shall be yours, for though it is a forest, you shall cut it down, and the extent of it shall be yours, for you shall drive out the Canaanites, though they have chariots of iron, and though they are strong.”

The whole congregation of the children of Israel assembled themselves together at Shiloh, and set up the tent of meeting there, and the land was subdued before them. There remained among the children of Israel seven tribes, which had not yet divided their inheritance. Joshua said to the children of Israel, “How long will you delay going in to possess the land, which the Lord, the God of your fathers, has given you? Appoint three men of each tribe, and I will send them, and they shall arise, and walk through the land, and describe it according to their inheritance, and they shall come to me. They shall divide it into seven portions. Judah shall abide in his border on the south, and the house of Joseph shall abide in their border on the north. You shall describe the land in seven divisions, and bring the description here to me, and I will cast lots for you here before the Lord our God. For the Levites have no portion among you, for the priesthood of the Lord is their inheritance, and Gad and Reuben and the half-tribe of Manasseh have received their inheritance beyond the Jordan eastward, which Moses the servant of the Lord gave them.” The men arose, and went, and Joshua charged those who went to describe the land, saying, “Go and walk through the land, and describe it, and come again to me, and I will cast lots for you here before the Lord in Shiloh.” The men went and passed through the land, and described it in a book in seven divisions, by cities, and they came to Joshua at the camp at Shiloh. Joshua cast lots for them in Shiloh before the Lord, and there Joshua divided the land to the children of Israel according to their divisions.

The lot of the tribe of the children of Benjamin came up according to their families, and the border of their lot went out between the children of Judah and the children of Joseph. Their border on the north quarter was from the Jordan, and the border went up to the side of Jericho on the north, and went up through the hill country westward, and ends at the desert of Beth-aven. The border passed along from there to Luz, to the side of Luz (this is Bethel), southward, and the border went down to Ataroth-addar, by the mountain that lies on the south of lower Beth-horon. The border extended there, and turned about on the west quarter south, from the mountain that lies before Beth-horon to the south, and ended at Kiriath-baal (this is Kiriath-jearim), a city of the children of Judah; this was the west side. The south side was from the end of Kiriath-jearim, and the border went out west, and went out to the spring of the waters of Nephtoah, and the border went down to the end of the mountain that overlooks the valley of the son of Hinnom, which is to the north of the valley of Rephaim, and it went down to the valley of Hinnom, to the south side of the Jebusites, and went down to En-rogel, and it extended northward, and went out at En-shemesh, and went out to Geliloth, which is opposite the ascent of Adummim, and it went down to the stone of Bohan, the son of Reuben, and it passed along to the side opposite the Arabah to the north, and went down to the Arabah, and the border passed along to the north side of Beth-hoglah, and the border ended at the north bay of the Salt Sea, at the south end of the Jordan; this was the south border. The Jordan was the border of it on the east side. This was the inheritance of the children of Benjamin, by the borders of it round about, according to their families. Now the cities of the tribe of the children of Benjamin according to their families were Jericho, and Beth-hoglah, and Emek-keziz, and Beth-arabah, and Zemaraim, and Bethel, and Avvim, and Parah, and Ophrah, and Chephar-ammoni, and Ophni, and Geba; twelve cities with their villages, Gibeon, and Ramah, and Beeroth, and Mizpeh, and Chephirah, and Mozah, and Rekem, and Irpeel, and Taralah, and Zelah, ha-Eleph, and the Jebusites (this is Jerusalem), Gibeah, and Kiriath-jearim, fourteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the children of Benjamin according to their families.

The second lot came out for Simeon, for the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families, and their inheritance was in the midst of the inheritance of the children of Judah. They had for their inheritance: Beersheba, Sheba, and Moladah, and Hazar-shual, and Balah, and Ezem, and Eltolad, and Bethul, and Hormah, and Ziklag, and Beth Marcaboth, and Hazar-susah, and Beth-lebaoth, and Sharuhen, thirteen cities with their villages; Ain, Rimmon, and Ether, and Ashan, four cities with their villages; and all the villages that were round about these cities to Baalath-beer, Ramah of the Negeb. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Simeon according to their families. Out of the part of the children of Judah was the inheritance of the children of Simeon; for the portion of the children of Judah was too much for them, therefore the children of Simeon had inheritance in the midst of their inheritance.

The third lot came up for the children of Zebulun according to their families, and the border of their inheritance was to Sarid, and their border went up westward, to Maralah, and reached to Dabbesheth, and it reached to the brook that is east of Jokneam, and it turned from Sarid eastward toward the sunrise to the border of Chisloth-tabor, and it went out to Daberath, and went up to Japhia, and from there it passed along on the east toward the sunrise to Gath-hepher, to Ethkazin, and it went out at Rimmon which stretches to Neah, and the border turned about on the north to Hannathon, and ended at the valley of Iphtah-el, and Kattath, and Nahalal, and Shimron, and Idalah, and Bethlehem, twelve cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the children of Zebulun according to their families, these cities with their villages.

The fourth lot came out for Issachar, for the children of Issachar according to their families. Their border was to Jezreel, and Chesulloth, and Shunem, and Hapharaim, and Shion, and Anaharath, and Rabbith, and Kishion, and Ebez, and Remeth, and Engannim, and En-haddah, and Beth-pazzez, and the border reached to Tabor, and Shahazumah, and Beth-shemesh, and the border ended at the Jordan, sixteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Issachar according to their families, the cities with their villages.

The fifth lot came out for the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families. Their border was Helkath, and Hali, and Beten, and Achshaph, and Allammelech, and Amad, and Mishal, and it reached on the west to Carmel, and to Shihorlibnath, and it turned toward the sunrise to Beth-dagon, and reached to Zebulun, and to the valley of Iphtah-el northward to Beth-emek and Neiel, and it went out to Cabul on the north, and Ebron, and Rehob, and Hammon, and Kanah, to great Sidon, and the border turned to Ramah, and to the fortified city of Tyre, and the border turned to Hosah, and ended at the sea by the region of Achzib; Ummah also, and Aphek, and Rehob, twenty-two cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Asher according to their families, these cities with their villages.

The sixth lot came out for the children of Naphtali, for the children of Naphtali according to their families. Their border was from Heleph, from the oak in Zaanannim, and Adaminekeb, and Jabneel, to Lakkum, and ended at the Jordan, and the border turned westward to Aznoth-tabor, and went out from there to Hukkok, and it reached to Zebulun on the south, and reached to Asher on the west, and to Judah at the Jordan toward the sunrise. The fortified cities were Ziddim, Zer, and Hammath, Rakkath, and Chinnereth, and Adamah, and Ramah, and Hazor, and Kedesh, and Edrei, and En Hazor, Iron, and Migdal-el, Horem, and Beth-anath, and Beth-shemesh, nineteen cities with their villages. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Naphtali according to their families, the cities with their villages.

The seventh lot came out for the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families. The border of their inheritance was Zorah, and Eshtaol, and Irshemesh, and Shaalabbin, and Aijalon, and Ithlah, and Elon, and Timnah, and Ekron, and Eltekeh, and Gibbethon, and Baalath, and Jehud, and Bene-berak, and Gath-rimmon, and Me-jarkon, and Rakkon, with the border over against Joppa. When the border of the children of Dan was lost to them, the children of Dan went up and fought against Leshem, and took it, and struck it with the edge of the sword, and possessed it, and lived therein, and renamed Leshem as Dan, after the name of Dan their father. This is the inheritance of the tribe of the children of Dan according to their families, these cities with their villages.

So they made an end of distributing the land for inheritance by the borders of it, and the children of Israel gave an inheritance to Joshua the son of Nun in the midst of them. According to the commandment of the Lord they gave him the city which he asked, Timnathserah in the hill country of Ephraim, and he built the city, and lived there. These are the inheritances, which Eleazar the priest, and Joshua the son of Nun, and the heads of the fathers' houses of the tribes of the children of Israel, distributed for inheritance by lot in Shiloh before the Lord, at the entrance to the tent of meeting. So they made an end of dividing the land.